MHALA Jump Start Fellowship Recognized as Workforce Innovator

The Annapolis Coalition has recognized the Jump Start Fellowship, a program of Mental Health America of Los Angeles (MHALA) as a Workforce Innovation. Jump Start is a 12-week, full-time fellowship program for individuals who are interested in working in the adult community mental health field. The program combines recovery-focused classroom instruction with applied internships to prepare participants for employment. The Jump Start Fellowship is made possible through the support of the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, utilizing funding from the Mental Health Services Act Workforce Education and Training dollars.

To evaluate the program, the Coalition assembled a team of eight workforce experts with extensive behavioral health workforce experience to independently conduct reviews of program documentation using a standard scoring system to rate Jump Start on criteria used in previous national innovation searches: significance, effectiveness, novelty, and transferability. Simultaneously, The Coalition created and launched two surveys to assess satisfaction among program alumni and providers who subsequently employed these alumni. MHALA used its social networks and communication systems to reach out to alumni and providers. A summary of the expert ratings and the surveys was compiled for review by the expert panel. The results of this comprehensive review of the data collected about the Jump Start Fellowship confirmed that there was a strong consensus among experts, workplace partners, and alumni that the program is a beneficial and valuable resource—and one that clearly qualifies as a Workforce Innovation.

For more information on the review process, read a summary of the report’s findings here. MHALA_JumpStart